Love Me Like You Do
by Tinkerbell3902
Summary: A collection of musically inspired Captain Swan drabbles. Contains both canon and AU pieces.
1. Photograph

**A/N** : So this is my foray into writing for Captain Swan, which has been my obsession since season 2. They hage really gotten me back into writing fanfiction so this is just a collection of stand alone drabbles that pop into my head (and to fill the void between now and the start of 5B)! The rating of this series may change depending on where the inspiration takes me. As always, please review!

* * *

 _We keep this love in a photograph_

 _We made these memories for ourselves_

 _Where our eyes are never closing_

 _Hearts are never broken_

 _And time's forever frozen still…_

"Photograph" - Ed Sheeran

 **Photograph**

"Will you tell me what this is all about now, Swan?"

She just smiles as she clears their dining room table of the remnants of what had been an elaborate dinner spread from Granny's. When she returns from the kitchen, he takes her by the wrist and pulls her into his lap, kissing her deeply.

"Easy there, Captain…"

"Now's not the time to play coy… And I believe that it was you that said that you weren't a delicate flower."

"That's still true."

"Are you ever going to tell me what we're celebrating? I'll have you know that I know it's not our anniversary and I know that it's not either of our birthdays."

She bites her bottom lip and he can't help but to notice that there's a mischievous twinkle in her eye, letting him know that she knows something that he doesn't.

"Do you have your cell phone? Mine is upstairs charging."

He takes his phone out of his pocket and hands it to her. He can't help but to smile as she rises to her feet, fiddling with it. Her joy is infectious. Not everyone gets to see her this light and carefree and the fact that he's contributed to her happiness makes his heart soar.

"Why do you need my phone?"

"Because I want to take a picture."

"Because you want to immortalize how devilishly handsome I am?"

She holds up the phone, seemingly to focus on him in the frame, and she doesn't even bother to do her usual eye roll at his remarks about his looks but rather let's out a soft chuckle and shakes her head.

"Because I want you to remember this moment for the rest of your life."

"And what moment would that be, love?"

"The moment that you find out that you're going to be a father."

He hears the click of the camera and he feels all of the breath leave his body. He hears Emma giggle, knowing that his reaction to her news was just what she wanted to capture. He finds his way to his feet and gently places his hand on her stomach.

He was going to be a father.

"You're pregnant?"

"Yeah… Is that ok? I know that we haven't been back from the underworld for that long but… I mean, are you happy about it?"

"How could I not be? You, my love, are carrying my child… the happiness that I feel is without equal."

And it was true. In all of his years, he had never felt this sense of completion or content. Yes, she was the savior and she had saved this town from countless atrocities but she had also saved him.

"Ok, one more picture."

"Not one of those accursed selfies…"

"Killian, just one more."

"If the lady insists…"

She gently places herself back on his lap and holds the phone in front of him. He places his chin on the crook of her neck and smiles. In those few words that fell from his beloved's lips, hundreds of years of baggage seemed to lift, freeing him with the promise of this new life that they had created. Emma snaps the picture and beams at him.

"Our first family photo…"

"Aye, love… the first of many."


	2. Promise of Spring

_How like the fall_

 _To be gone in a day_

 _Just as the leaves had turned gold_

 _I was drawn to the sound_

 _That the wind carried down_

 _From an open window pane_

 _And oh, how like a song_

 _Or a sad melody_

 _To linger long after the end_

 _And the harmony rings_

 _With the promise of spring_

 _On a Brooklyn street…_

"Dienda" - Sting

 **Promise of Spring**

The wind was picking up, sending the autumn leaves tumbling down the cobbled street, and Killian Jones flipped up the collar of his flimsy jacket. The chill in the air seemed to warn that winter was nearly here. He shoved his hands back into his pockets and continued on his way. Clothing donations at the orphanage were scarce, especially for a fifteen year old boy, so he highly doubted that a winter coat was in his future. Resigning himself to another cold and lonely night, he turned the all too familiar corner to make his way back to the orphanage.

"Very good, Emma… again please."

He's suddenly arrested by a hauntingly beautiful piano melody but played by someone who had known pain. His pain. The pain of loneliness and longing. His eyes searched for the source and they fell to a small little window with an awning above with the words "Ms. Blanchard's Music Shop" on it. He pressed his nose to the glass, looking in, and there she was. He watched her as her green eyes fluttered between the sheet music and the keys at her fingertips, seamlessly weaving the notes into a song. She was young, perhaps around his age, and her luminous blonde hair was swept behind her ears. She had the loveliest frown upon her pouty lips, obviously in deep contemplation about her piano lesson. Her teacher, Ms. Blanchard presumably, slowly circled around Emma as she played, nodding in sync with the notes, waiting for an incorrect note to come but it doesn't.

She's perfect.

"Great job, Emma. We'll pick this up next Thursday. I believe that your foster mom is here to pick you up."

He saw her sigh and she went to gather up her music books and that's when their eyes met. He would've ducked out of sight but something locked him there. Perhaps it was the sadness that pooled in her eyes and how they mirrored his own. But despite all of that, he saw something else.

Hope.

And in that moment, he saw her mouth turn up into a smile and he felt one creep across his face, like she also recognized a kindred spirit. Noticing her pupil's gaze, Ms. Blanchard glanced to the window and Killian quickly ducked out of sight, still grinning to himself before he took off to return back to the orphanage.

 _He'd be back next Thursday._


	3. Forever

**A/N** : Short, sweet and fluffy. Inspired by a scene from the amazing manga "Sailor Moon" by Naoko Takeuchi.

* * *

 _Fall on me_

 _Tell me everything you want me to be_

 _Forever with you_

 _Forever in me_

 _Ever the same…_

"Ever the Same" - Rob Thomas

 **Forever**

The gentlest of kisses rouses her from her sleep and her eyes flutter open to meet his. Crisp blue, like the sea that he loves so much. His lips turn up into a small smile upon realizing that she's awake.

"Good morning, love…"

"Good morning, Killian."

She scoots in closer and he gathers her up into his arms, burying her face into his chest. Her body is deliciously sore from their multiple rounds of lovemaking from the night before. Neither of them wanted to sleep, making up for lost time, but the journey from the underworld had finally caught up with them and fatigue won out in the end.

"How're you feeling?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question? You are, after all, the one that literally came back from the dead."

"That may be true… but your happiness is my number one priority so humor me."

"I'm just so happy to have you back."

"And I am happy to be back."

She swings her leg around so that she's astride him and kisses him. He rises to meet her, swiftly pushing all of her golden tresses to one side, and layers kisses along her neck. She sighs contently and then giggles as his stubble tickles her skin.

"Killian…"

"Mhm?"

"Say it again…"

"Say what?"

"You know…"

She manages to gently pry him from her neck and holds his face in her hands, looking straight at him. He rolls his eyes and huffs a bit, obviously miffed at the pause in his ministrations.

"Swan, I said it at least fifty times last night."

"Just once more?"

"Alright… but this is the last time though. Deal?"

"Deal."

He wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her even closer, closing the little bit of space that was between their bodies. He takes one of her hands and kisses the inside of her wrist and then her palm before returning his gaze back to her.

"Let's get married, Emma."

Her hand is beneath his, resting on his chest over his heart. She closes her eyes and relishes the sound and the feeling of it beating heartily underneath her palm.

And to think that she almost lost this.

"Ok. We'll get married."


	4. One Dance

_I may be numberless, I may be innocent_  
 _I may know many things, I may be ignorant_  
 _Or I could ride with kings and conquer many lands_  
 _Or win this world at cards and let it slip my hands_  
 _I could be cannon food, destroyed a thousand times_  
 _Reborn as fortune's child to judge another's crimes_  
 _Or wear this pilgrim's cloak, or be a common thief_  
 _I've kept this single faith, I have but one belief_

 _I still love you_  
 _I still want you…_

"A Thousand Years" - Sting

 **One Dance**

"One dance… that's all I'm asking for, Swan."

She eyes him suspiciously and he can't hide his smirk as he sees her fingers twitch in her folded arms, trying so hard to deny the urge to take his extended hand. The wedding reception was in full swing and he could hear Regina's laughter as Robin twirled her around on the dance floor behind him, completely blissful and reveling in the celebration of her nuptials. Emma had stayed put for most of the evening, not wanting to take the spotlight away from the bride. However, the rest of Storybrooke had other plans and descended on her like vultures when she returned to town after a three year absence.

With a new boyfriend in tow, nonetheless.

" **One** dance."

He nods at her insistence at stopping at just one dance. She slides her hand into his and it fits so perfectly, just like it always has, and she's once again in his arms. He can feel the stares of everyone on the two of them but he doesn't care. He's missed this so much.

He's never going to find another woman like her.

He's just not.

And he realizes that's why he's always kept her at an arm's length. He could see it in her eyes when they first met. He saw the rest of his life. He saw himself loving her for the rest of his life and the inevitability of it all scared the hell out of him. But with her finally back in his arms again, he just had one inclination: to never let her go again.

"I'm in love with you, Emma Swan… I'm in love with you… and I tried not to be. I did everything to fight it… all of those years that we've spent doing this dance of being because we both know that we're meant to be. You know that you belong with me."

She stops, mid-song and mid-dance, and stares at him with half-incredulity and half-wonder. He can see the conflict in her eyes but notices how her grip on him never falters. He almost wants to laugh at the idea of stunning her into silence for once but she eventually finds some semblance of words.

"Killian, I- I have a boyfriend."

"Aye… but I'm saying that you could have a husband."

And the song ends and as promised, he stops, only placing a gentle kiss on the palm of her hand before taking his leave from the reception all together. Ten hours later, after she's dropped off her now ex-boyfriend at the bus station, Emma Swan shows up at Killian Jones' doorstep at Granny's.

They were married at City Hall that day.


	5. Threshold

_Me and you are built like armor_  
 _Nothing can stop love from loving on us_  
 _You know I'm not asking for much_  
 _Just a couple of forevers..._

"A Couple of Forevers" - Chrisette Michelle

 **Threshold**

She can barely contain her laughter as he sweeps her up into his arms. The festivities were still raging in the castle and most likely throughout the land but after the extensive pomp and circumstance of the ceremony and greeting all of the dignitaries that had traveled to their kingdom for the event, she and her husband finally had a moment to themselves.

Husband.

She can't stop the smile that breaks across her face whenever she thinks about how that's what he is to her now and much to her surprise, everyone's joy surrounding their nuptials mirrored hers. Perhaps the people were just happy to see their princess finally married that they were able to overlook the fact that she had chosen a former royal navy lieutenant-turned-pirate as her groom.

"Killian, what are you doing?"

"Carrying my bride over the threshold, of course."

"You're ridiculous… And you're probably going to drop me!"

"You would deny your husband the sacred honor of carrying you over the the threshold? You wound me, my princess. And I would never be so careless as to drop my beloved new wife."

The way his voice rolls over her newly minted title is laced with lascivious intentions, giving her a inkling of what he has in store. He's right though. He doesn't falter as he pushes the door into the bedroom open, carrying her inside. It's fully prepared for their wedding night, complete with rose petals strewn around and on the ornate canopy bed and a soft glow that permeates the entire room from the lit fireplace. He places her gently on the bed and her hands cling to the lapels of his jacket, pressing her forehead to his.

"I feel like this is our first time…"

Her voice is barely louder than a whisper and a small laugh escapes him as he carefully runs the pads of his fingers down her neck. He's so gentle with her. He may have been a fearsome adversary on the high seas but with her, she had only known him to be tender and loving.

"It should be.. But we cheated… a lot."

She feels herself flush just thinking about it and he smiles, shrugging off his coat, letting the loose flowing dress shirt come forth. She bites her bottom lip at the sight of his dark chest hair peeking through the top. It almost seems unfair to think about the fact that this man belongs to her now. She parts her lips to offer a response but before she even has the chance to utter a single word, he captures her mouth in a dizzying kiss and they fall back onto the bed in a heap of tangled limbs. She feels her body yield to him like she has so many times and he divests her of her overly constricting wedding gown, She feels his fingers delicately but skillfully tread across her bare skin, eliciting a response only seen in puppet masters and their marionettes.

He brought her to life.

She arches her back and cries out his name when he finally enters her and he dips his head, pressing his forehead against hers, letting out a ragged breath like he too had been waiting for this all day. She finds her release quickly and he follows suit shortly afterward. The days leading up to their nuptials had been the longest that they had been apart and their overeagerness clearly caught up to them.

"I guess no one is immune to the charms of Captain Killian Jones… Not even the Crown Princess of Misthaven."

He turns to face her, threading his fingers through her loose blonde curls, and she sees his countenance turn measured, serious even, like she's said something wrong. He then takes her left hand in his, running his thumb over the simple gold band that rests on her finger, which had not even been there for more than a few hours, brings it up to his lips and presses the faintest of kisses to it.

"No, love… It was you who ensnared me… for when I first gazed upon your face, I knew that I was meant to be yours…And the moment when you became my wife, Emma... I became complete."

And all she can do is press her lips to his, focusing on nothing but kissing him back as fiercely as she could.


	6. Wishing for Rain

_A drop in the ocean  
A change in the weather  
I was praying that you and me might end up together  
It's like wishing for rain as I stand in the desert  
But I'm holding you closer than most  
'Cause you are my heaven…  
_  
"A Drop In the Ocean" – Ron Pope

 **Wishing for Rain**

Lying had always been one of his strong suits.

He had always been a survivor and as part of that trait, it was imperative that he maintained his ability to lie. But he never had a problem with it. His philosophy was that if people were stupid enough to let him take advantage of them, then they deserved it.

He just never thought that he would lie to himself.

His fingertips run over her skin, along her shoulder blade first, then up her neck, reveling in the contrast between her smoothness and his calloused hands. Her eyes are closed, with her thick lashes resting on her cheek, but he knows that she's not asleep. She's just pretending to because she doesn't want to say anything. He knows her too well. He dips his head, inhaling the intoxicating mixture of the sea salt air and her perfume, and then places just the faintest breath of a kiss to her neck.

"You can't marry him, Emma."

He's never been much of an emotional person so the lump in the back of his throat as he whispers those words to the woman beside him and the way that his voice breaks ever so slightly is foreign to him. His eyes sting and it takes him a few moments to realize that it's because there are tears in them. His right arm wraps around her and draws her into his chest, silently willing her to never leave him or this bed. It's probably unhealthy for him to feel this strongly but he doesn't care.

Because he loves her too much.

"Killian…"

This was never supposed to happen. He was never supposed to feel this way ever again. After Milah, he had resigned himself to never love again. He had shut off that part of himself to the world. He had tried to fill that hole with the lust for revenge against the one who took her from him but after hundreds of years of the empty pursuit of the dark one, he found himself completely lost.

Until she had walked into his life.

She was never supposed to be his and he knew that. The princess and the pirate? It sounds more like a fable than reality. However, as the early morning light pours in through the windows of the Jolly Roger, bathing her naked skin in its glow, he can't help but to at least try to fight for the impossible.

"You can't… you don't even love him. You hardly even know him."

Her body caves in and trembles as soon as the words fall from his lips and he knows that she's crying. He hates himself sometimes, especially when she cries but he can't hold his tongue anymore. It was this bed, his bed, that she was in more often than her own in the palace and it was his name that was on her lips as she fell asleep in his arms at night. That had to mean something.

They had to mean something.

"You promised… you promised me that you weren't going to do this."

"I don't give a damn about what I promised. I won't let you do this."

"That's not fair, Killian… You know that I don't have a choice… You knew that before we even started this."

Of course it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that she had awakened something inside of him that he thought had long been buried. It wasn't fair that the only woman that made him want to actually live again was the very one that he could never have. She sits up, wrapping herself in his sheets, and looks up at him with those bright green eyes of hers. He joins her, pressing his lips to her neck, and she waivers just for a moment, giving into that inexplicable passion between the two of them, but then the moment is gone and she pulls away.

"But I love you..."

He practically chokes out the words. It's been centuries since he's said them and they hurt just as much as they did back then.

"What would you have me do? Hurt the entire kingdom and put its future at risk just because you're asking me to?"

"So you'd rather hurt me instead?"

"Hurting you is the last thing I want, Killian."

"And what about you? You would doom yourself to a loveless political marriage? You're just going to deny yourself the man that loves you more than his own life?"

And then she breaks. Her entire body doubles over as her sobs take hold and he's there, holding her together and whispering sweet words that seem to pacify her. Her tears are hot on his face as their lips meet and her embrace is warm as her body yields to him once again. And as he slides into her, he can't help but to think how perfectly they fit together.

"I love you, Killian."

And it's that affirmation that allows him to sleep.

"Emma?"

He's always prided himself on his ability to lie and in that moment, he knows that he has a gift for it. Because he's gotten so good at lying that he couldn't even see the fact that he had been lying to himself when he wakes up alone. She's not beside him, wrapped up in his arms. She's not anywhere. He sits up and puts his face in his hands.

He had been lying to himself when he allowed himself to believe that she would actually choose him.


	7. Beast of Burden

_I won't let them break you down  
And I won't hear the empty sounds  
I'm hopelessly pretending that I know the answer  
Angel's light and neon fires that burn so cold through your desires  
And all you are is all I need to know..._

"Not Broken" - Goo Goo Dolls

 **Beast of Burden**

Her hand hovers over the door before she can bring herself to knock. It seems absurd to knock on the door to the bedroom, **their** bedroom, but she does anyway before entering. It no longer feels strange to think of it as their bedroom and she had fallen into the familiarity of falling asleep every night with her back pressed against his chest and his arm draped around her waist.

She tossed and turned for hours when he didn't come to bed last night.

She finds him sitting on the edge of the bed and he looks up at her with those blue eyes that she could practically drown in. She sees anger and she sees hurt but underneath all of that, she sees love. He still loves her just as much as he always has. She sits down next to him and puts her head on his shoulder, a gesture that she's done a million times before and she half expects him to bristle at it but all he does is sigh heavily. He's still upset but not enough to deny her.

"Are you still not speaking to me, Killian?"

"What do you want me to say?"

"Anything… anything would be better than you not talking to me."

She missed him. Even though he had been home, he hadn't really been present, letting his anger keep him closed off from her. She missed him last night in bed, she missed how he always managed to find ways to touch her and most of all, she missed hearing that deep but soothing baritone of his voice.

"Why does it matter? You clearly don't see the value in talking to me and you definitely don't want to confide in me."

He rises to his feet and her body aches at the loss of contact. This was why she didn't tell him about her visions. She wanted to avoid this very conversation. She wanted to enjoy the time, however little it may be, that they would have together. She wanted to leave him with good memories.

"You think this was about me not wanting to confide in you?"

"What else would it be about?"

"I didn't want my fate to be a burden on you!"

"A burden? You could never be a burden to me, Emma!"

His voice is uncharacteristically sharp, frustrated and incredulous by her line of thinking, and she shuts her eyes, attempting to force the tears back. He holds her face in his hands and then he's kissing her like his life depended on it, because that's what this was. He had once told her that she was his happy ending and the last thing that she wanted to do was to take that away from him.

"You've already gone through so much, Killian… how was I supposed to tell you that future that we fought so much to have was never going to happen? How was I supposed to tell you that you were going to lose me?"

"I'm **not** going to lose you, do you understand? I told your father once that I would go to the ends of the earth or time for you and I meant it. You risked everything to bring me back and now it's time for me to do the same for you."

The way that he says it, with that amount of conviction, makes her believe and she holds onto him tighter than she ever has before and she wants to fight. She wants to fight for her happy ending because she deserved to be happy.

She deserved him.

He comes back to bed that night and for the first time since the visions started, she sleeps soundly.


	8. Addicted to Love

**A/N** : If you haven't heard Florence + The Machine's cover of this song, I'd highly recommend it.

 _The lights are on, but you're not home  
Your mind is not your own  
Your heart sweats, your body shakes  
Another kiss is what it takes  
You can't sleep, you can't eat  
There's no doubt, you're in deep  
Your throat is tight, you can't breathe  
Another kiss is all you need…_

"Addicted to Love" - Robert Palmer

 **Addicted to Love**

"I know what you're doing, love…"

The Rabbit Hole is unusually quiet for a Friday afternoon, just a few of the regulars, and it was probably for the best. The summer heat was oppressive and most of the inhabitants of Storybrooke were down by the shore, taking refuge from the weather. She was already there when he walked in, chatting up the bartender, tossing around that enigmatic smile that had ensnared him once upon a time.

"I'm sure that I have no idea what you're talking about, Killian."

She looks up at him, through those long and thick lashes of hers, and she almost seems innocent.

 _Almost._

He's cornered her by that thing that this world's inhabitants call a jukebox and her hair is tied up in a messy bun, allowing him a delicious and unobstructed view of her long neck. He's close enough that he's practically salivating at the scent of coconut on her skin from her favorite lotion. It reminds him of his travels and the little minx knows that he loves the way it smells on her. She draws closer to him, running her fingers down the chain of his pendant and then over the small patch of dark chest hair that peeks out from his button up shirt, smiling as she does it.

"You are by far… the most dangerous woman that I've ever encountered."

"Now what have I done to earn such a title?"

"You know bloody well what you've done, Swan."

She gently tugs on the chain, pulling him closer and eliciting a sharp hiss from him. His lips practically tremble at the proximity, aching to feel hers, and he hears her let out a small lithe laugh. She's enjoying this, tormenting him as only she could, knowing that she could drive him to the brink of insanity.

"All of this over a song, Killian?"

"It's **our** song."

She chuckles at the clear emphasis on the word "our" but she left him no choice. She had put their song on and had asked that bartender, quite loudly if he did say so himself, if he would dance with her. The volume of her request was clearly for his benefit and he nearly crushed the tumbler that held the generous helping of rum in his hand. He would've gladly hurled it at the bartender's face but, as if he could sense the pirate's foul disposition, he knew better and politely declined Emma's invitation.

"I didn't realize that you were that sentimental."

"Sentimental? It was the song that we danced to at our wedding."

"And look how that turned out."

She loosens her grip on his chain and leans back against that infernal music box. His eyes roam over her body and sees her white shirt ride ever so slightly up, exposing a sliver of her delicate taut skin. The hours that he's spent worshiping that skin of hers runs through his mind and he's only brought out of his reverie by the glint of the silver band that is still perched upon her finger.

"Yet, you're still wearing your ring."

She looks down at her hand, admiring the ring for a moment but then just offers a nonchalant shrug.

"Really? I hadn't noticed."

And now it's his turn to laugh. He leers over her, trailing one of his long fingers up her neck and then underneath her chin, tilting her head upwards so that their lips were just a breath away from each other. He gently swipes his thumb over her bottom lip and he can feel a pull in the pit of his stomach. It's been far too long since he had the pleasure of tasting them.

"You forget that you can't lie to me, Swan. You haven't taken that ring off because you don't want to…"

She yanks him by the pendant again, pulling him out of the sight of the other bar patrons and into the back room. Before he can even say a word, she launches herself into his arms, charging at his mouth and he responds in kind, pinning her against the wall, closing what little space there had been between them. He's completely lost himself in sensation and he feels himself bowing to her will, completely at her mercy. He swears under his breath as she bites his bottom lip all the while, discretely slipping a hand into his now unbuckled pants.

"All I wanted you to do is fight for me, Killian."

Her lips are right at his ear and her breath is ragged, brimming with the same need that was coursing through his veins. He hoists her up into his arms and she instinctively wraps her legs around his waist. He marvels at the way that their bodies seem to just meld together, as if they were made for each other. Soon enough, his pants are in a heap at his ankles and he's positioned right at her entrance.

"I always fight for what is mine."

And with that, he enters her. She throws her head back at the sharpness, gasping, and he holds onto her even tighter, attempting to anchor himself to something because he was surely going to lose control at the rate that they were going. His legs tremble as he feels her tighten around him and their lips meet again, furiously battling for dominance as they began to move in tandem.

"Possessive much?"

The tail end of her question comes out in the form of a strangled cry as he slides into her, over and over, each thrust more forceful than the last. He quickly covers her mouth with his, keeping their moans muffled. The last thing that they wanted or needed was a curious bar patron to stumble on this interlude. Her nails bore into his skin, leaving behind little crescent shaped indents, marking him as hers.

"Don't act like you don't love it, Swan."

"Pirate."

"Princess."

She smirks.

"Now, don't act like **you** don't love it."

"I love you… that's for sure."

And it's those words that seem to break her and she literally comes apart in his arms, shaking as her orgasm rips through her body. He's quick to follow, emptying himself inside of her with her name on his lips. He's never going to want anything as much as he wants her. He could fight it all he wants but he knows that it would just be in vain.

He's never going to get enough of her.

"Do you even remember what we were fighting about?"

Her question comes in between heaving breaths, attempting to recover from their encounter.

"I can't say that I do, love… but it must've not been important enough since neither one of us can remember what it was."

"Will you come back home now?"

He almost doesn't hear her. Her voice is so quiet and he realizes that all of that bravado that had been there before had dissipated. She still clings to him, burying her face into the crook of his neck, and he looks down at her, offering a small smile.

"Wherever you are, Emma… I'm home."


	9. Faith

**A/N** : Happy New Year Everyone! So this isn't technically a song quote but it's from Beyoncé's musical masterpiece "Lemonade" so it kinda works the same...

 _Why do you deny yourself heaven?  
_ _Why do you consider yourself undeserving?  
_ _Why are you afraid of love?  
_ _You think it's not possible for someone like you.  
_ _But you are the love of my life…_

"Lemonade" - Beyoncé

 **Faith**

She hears his footsteps on the other side of the door as he paces back and forth. He stops after a moment and she knows that he wants to come in but can't bring himself to do so. She sighs deeply and places her hand on her stomach, sinking further into the bathtub.

Her pirate and his damn brooding.

The doorknob turns and there he is. His dark hair and black leather jacket are soaked through, probably from being out in the storm that had been blanketing Storybrooke for the past few days. Before he can even open his mouth to sputter out the apology that he knows that she deserves, she holds her hand out to him. After a beat, contemplating his next move, he strips down, even removing the brace that his hook attaches into, and she scoots forward, letting him slide into the bath behind her. His right arm comes around her shoulder, bringing her in closer, and she can feel the tension radiating off of him. Not even the respite of a soothing bath can quell the storm raging within.

"I know you're scared, Killian…"

And he exhales a shaky breath that he's been holding for god knows how long.

"Scared doesn't even begin to describe how I feel, Swan."

She sits up, turning to face him, and he brings her into his lap, closing what little space was left between the two of them. Some of the water spills over the rim of the tub but she pays it no mind as she holds his face in her hands, fingers smoothing over the dark brown stubble on his cheek and then over his lips. His eyes are weary and fearful. She often thinks about the only way she can tell his true age is by the look in his eyes. They've seen so much.

"Tell me then…"

He looks down between the two of them, swallowing hard, and tentatively reaches out to touch her stomach. His hand hovers over her belly for a moment and then, with a sharp exhale, he places it gently on her taut skin.

Because it wouldn't be like this for very long.

"I don't know the first thing about being a father, Emma… Mine abandoned me when I was young… and when I found him later…"

His voice breaks off before he can even finish his thought and she can see him blinking back tears. Of course, Killian had told her what had transpired between him and his father but it was still hard for him to physically admit what he had done.

"You're not that person anymore…"

"I know… but still… what kind of father could I hope to be when I had such an abysmal experience with my own? I don't deserve to have a child and no child should be cursed to have me as a father…"

She places a finger to his lips, silencing him, and she shakes her head. Of course, centuries of tormenting himself over his actions wouldn't just magically disappear overnight with kisses, bubble baths and a few "I Love You's." However, perhaps the promise of a new life, the beginning of a new chapter and ultimately a chance to be happy, could be very the seeds that needed to be sown in order for Killian to forgive himself.

"I don't want to hear any of that… because it's not true and you know that it's not true. You are the best person that I've ever known… and I won't listen to you say that you don't deserve this because you do… that future that we talked about? The one we fought so hard for in Camelot and in the Underworld? This baby… **our** baby is a big part of it."

She places a hand on top of the one he has resting on her stomach and she can feel just a little bit of his tension begin to dissipate. He had once told her that she needed to put her faith in him and now that's what she needed him to do. She needed him to believe that they could do this because they could.

"Still, I can't help but to wonder… what if I end up being a terrible father?"

"Killian, do you **really** think I would let you be a terrible father?"

And then he manages to crack a small smile.

"Aye, I suppose not, love."

They were going to be fine.


	10. Rolling Stone

_So baby love me  
_ _Before they all love me  
_ _Until you won't love me  
_ _Because they all left me  
_ _I'll be different  
_ _I think I'll be different  
_ _I hope I'm not different  
_ _And I hope you'll still listen  
_ _But until then  
_ _Baby I got you…_

"Rolling Stone" - The Weeknd

Rolling Stone

It's all meaningless, he thinks.

The high he should be on right now, performing the last of his few sold out shows in New York City, should be immense. He should feel untouchable, unbreakable… invincible even. But he doesn't. There's this pit in the bottom of his stomach, this emptiness that not all of the money, all of the women or all of the finest liquor could drown out. His hand reaches for the bottle of rum and he twists off the cap, completely ignoring the glassware sitting idly by.

Well, he could at least try with the booze again…

He polishes off the bottle and coughs as it burns all the way down. That's when he hears it. That small breath of a chuckle behind him. Anyone else wouldn't have even flinched but he could've picked that sound out anywhere.

Because he had been dying to hear it again…

"Emma..."

She leans against his dressing room door with her arms folded, blond hair tousled perfectly at her shoulders and cascading over a simple, albeit short, black dress paired with the pair of leather thigh high boots that she knows that he loves. Her long winter coat rests on her arm while a VIP All-Access badge hangs around her neck and he wonders if she's finally stopped wearing his brother's ring around her neck.

"Killian…"

"You look… well."

"Spare me the pleasantries, Killian. Just tell me why you summoned me here."

"Summoned?"

She laughs as she tosses her jacket onto the nearby couch and perches herself on the vanity right in front of him, crossing her legs and letting her dress hike up ever so slightly. She's so close that he can smell her perfume. He closes his eyes and exhales shakily, remember how his sheets would smell like her for days. She holds up the badge around her neck.

"Robin fessed up that you're the one who sent me the passes, not Regina. Have you forgotten about my superpower already?"

"Yet you came…"

"I knew how much selling out shows in New York meant to you."

The smirk is gone and in its place is a look of genuine sincerity. He had Robin, his road manager, to send her a ticket on a whim. He didn't anticipate her actually showing up but of course she did. Because that's what the kind of person that she was. They had talked about this day hundreds of times: on their way home from yet another low-paying gig at a club, in their cramped studio apartment before even a glimmer of a record deal was in sight and when they spent the last of their savings to record the band's demo record. Of course she knew what this day meant to him.

What it meant to both of them.

Before he even knows it, his hands are sliding up her neck, tilting her face up towards him. How did he ever let her slip from his fingertips? It was the question that haunted him until this day. He wants her back. He aches for her in places that he didn't even know existed. He wants her to be his again but he feels her tense up in his arms and she shakes her head.

"Emma, please…"

"No… I'm not doing this… Not again."

She withdraws from his embrace and folds her arms across her chest. Her eyes are downcast, like she's afraid to look him, and his heart sinks a little. He's done this to her. All of the crap that he's put her through has brought them to this moment.

"It'll be different this time, Emma… I'm different this time."

She chuckles bitterly and he knows why. He's said this before, many times before. He can practically taste the repetitiveness on his tongue. She looks up at him and sighs wearily.

"That may be… Robin said that you were different… miserable even… but I can't seem to get your voice out of my head on the night that I moved out… do you remember what you said to me?"

"I said a lot of things that I regret that night…"

"You told me that you didn't belong to just me… that you needed to belong to the music and your fans and that I was holding you back. You couldn't be the musician that you wanted to be while being weighed down by our life together."

He always knew that he broke her heart but he knew that was the moment that it shattered. He could see it in her eyes that night, seeing all of the hope trickle out of her with that lone silent tear that rolled down her cheek. All of the fight that she had was gone and with a single nod, she walked straight into their bedroom, packed one suitcase and left without saying a word.

"Aye… but here's the crazy part… ever since you walked out, all I've wanted is to belong to you and only you, Swan."

"Killian…"

And there it is… a flicker of that spark that he thought that he had extinguished is back in her eyes. She parts her lips like she wants to say something else but she's stopped by the door swinging open. Robin peeks his head in and offers an apologetic smile to both of them.

"I'm sorry, mate, but you have that interview with Rolling Stone… the reporter is waiting for you in the next room."

"Give me fifteen minutes…"

"You're twenty minutes late as is, Killian…"

"Robin, please… I'm in the middle of something important."

With an exasperated sigh, Robin nods and exits as quickly as he came while Emma shrugs her jacket back on. He can feel her retreating back into her armor and he can't have that. She could deny it all she wanted but he saw that fleeting glimmer of what they had and he wasn't about lose it again.

"I should go… you shouldn't leave Rolling Stone waiting..."

"The interview can wait… this can't, Emma."

"You've worked really hard to get here, Killian… you should enjoy it."

She presses a soft kiss to his cheek, letting her lips linger a few beats longer than she probably meant to, and before she can reach the door, he reaches out and takes her by the hand. Feeling her fingertips lace with his, and how easily she falls back into that familiarity, warms him.

"I'm staying at The Bowery… Suite 1603. Please come…"

He knows that he has no right to ask her to take him back. She's probably got a laundry list of reasons to not trust a single word out of his mouth but she always saw the good in him, even when he didn't see it in himself, let alone deserve it.

And so he waits.

He waits for what seems like hours, pacing in his suite, taking slow swigs straight from the bottle of rum that he's nursing, and he soon realizes that she's not coming. Perhaps there are just some things that you just can't come back from and he would just have to learn to live with that. He sets aside the rum and throws his arm over his face, ready to surrender to the pull of the liquor and drift off to sleep, when a knock jolts him out of his stupor. He pulls open the door wide open and there she is. Before he can say a word, she presses a finger to his lips.

"Are you really ready for this, Killian? Because if you let me go again, I'm not coming back."

And without any sort of hesitation, he scoops her up into his arms and takes her into the bedroom, making love to her in a way that he never did before. Later, he assures her that he's never letting her get away from him again. Six weeks later, after the tour has wrapped, he makes good on his promise by taking her to city hall, where he makes her his wife. Robin makes a sly joke about the sound of a million girls' hearts breaking now that he was married but he doesn't care.

He's got his girl back.


	11. Mine

_On my mind, up past my bedtime  
No rest at the kingdom...  
Alone in my place, my heart is away  
All that I can think of is...  
We should get married, we should get married  
Let's stop holding back on this and let's get carried away…_

"Mine" - Beyoncé

 **Mine**

She didn't think it would actually fit.

Her mother had brought over the dress earlier, surprised that it had actually made it over in the original curse. Of course, Snow insisted that Emma should wear whatever she wanted to for her big day but after she left, curiosity won out and now she was standing in front of her bedroom mirror, in her mother's wedding dress. Her hands smooth over the texture in the full skirt and she does a full turn, smiling as she admires it from all angles. For a dress that quite literally came out of a storybook, it worked quite well in this realm.

"Emma? Are you home?"

The baritone of Killian's voice as it travels upstairs completely takes her out of her reverie. She had been so entranced that she didn't even hear the front door open.

"Killian? Is that you?"

She hears the quickening of his pace coming up the stairs. He had left early that morning, before she and Henry had even woken up, so he was probably eager to see her after being away for so long.

"Aye, it's me… I was just doing the last minute preparations on the Jolly Roger before the ceremony. It's hard to believe that our nuptials are nearly here."

"No, wait! Don't come in here!"

But it's too late. The door swings open and with a shriek, she quickly turns away from him, burying her face in her hands, a feeble attempt to hide her appearance. His protective instinct kicks in and he immediately rushes towards her, concern seeping into his expression and voice.

"Swan? Are you alright?"

"Killian, I told you not to come in here! It's bad luck to see me in my dress before the wedding!"

And then something that she doesn't expect happens. He laughs. She peeks through her fingers and looks into the mirror and sees him smiling.

"Emma, after everything that we've been through, do you really think that a silly superstition could ever keep us from finally being married?"

She lowers her hands and meets his smile with one of her own. Perhaps she was overreacting just a bit with the dress. Their relationship defied all sorts of conventions. One little broken rule shouldn't tip the balance.

"No, I guess not."

She turns around to face him and he just stares at her in complete awe. She's never known him to not have anything to say but just once, her pirate was rendered speechless. He envelops his hands around hers and brings them to his lips, gently kissing her knuckles.

"Swan… in all of my years… I have never seen a more exquisite sight than you in this dress."

She feels the tears welling up in her eyes and she doesn't even try to stop them from falling. To think that she almost lost this, more than once. The thought of life without him now was inconceivable. They were bound to each other, a bond that withstood time, realms and even death.

"I didn't realize how important this was… I mean, it's just a dress but I didn't know how important this really was, Killian…"

"What?"

"To see that look on your face…"

"I'm sorry that I ruined the surprise, love… I didn't mean to upset you."

He gently reaches out, brushing away the wetness from her cheeks, but she just shakes her head and smiles.

"No, I'm not upset… I'm glad that it's just you and me right now… and no one else is going to see that look but me."

Her hands grip the lapels of his leather jacket and she presses her forehead to his, exhaling shakily. His arms wrap around her waist, pulling her in closer.

"What is it, Emma? You still seem vexed."

"Killian, it just all became so real to me now… being in this dress and seeing you look at me like that. It just hit me all at once. This is really happening, isn't it? We're really getting married."

"Aye, love… that is, if you'll still have me."

He barely gets the last syllable out before she captures his mouth in a kiss that makes her head spin. How she ever was so lucky to find him was beyond her but she would hold onto him and never let him go so long as she lived.

"After everything that we've been through, if you think that I'm not marrying you, you're absolutely crazy."


	12. She May Be The Reason

A/N: Inspired by Elvis Costello's cover of this song.

* * *

 _She may be the reason I survive  
_ _The why and wherefore I'm alive  
_ _The one I'll care for through the rough in ready years  
_ _Me … I'll take her laughter and her tears  
_ _And make them all my souvenirs  
_ _For where she goes I've got to be  
_ _The meaning of my life is  
_ _She…_

"She" – Charles Aznavour

 **She May Be The Reason**

"Killian, stop staring at my father… if you don't, he will **actually** come over here and kill you."

Killian Jones quickly diverts his eyes from the King's murderous glare and directs them to the beautiful woman who is in his arms. Everyone in kingdom had shown up for the ball, some more begrudgingly than others, but everyone who cared about them was there. Emma was the one who wanted to have the celebration and Killian was so head over heels for this woman that he went along with it. Even at the potential expense of his own life.

"You would think that he would be nicer to me now that I'm his son-in-law."

She laughs as she snakes her arms around his neck and he kisses her deeply. It's probably not the best idea in front of her father, who has his hand right on his sword, but if he was going to die, he might as well die happy.

"Don't worry, I think my parents are more upset at the fact that we ran off to get married without the pomp and circumstance that a royal wedding deserves than the fact that we even got married at all."

He glances back over to the table where her family sits. Queen Snow is holding her husband's hand, undoubtedly trying to quell another potential outburst, and David sits beside her, never taking his eyes off the newlyweds, slowly shaking his head in clear disapproval of his daughter's choice.

"Somehow, love, I'm less inclined to believe that."

He picks up the pace of their waltz, spinning her with his good hand, and she laughs freely. Her blond curls swing about her shoulders and her white dress floats around her as he guides her through her turn. As he brings her back into his arms, the light catches the gold band on her left finger but the shine pales in comparison to the light in her eyes as she looks up at him adoringly.

"What're you staring at?"

"You… the goddess that finally agreed to marry me after asking four times."

She throws her head back and laughs.

"You're never going to let me forget that I turned you down three times before saying yes, are you?"

"Absolutely not… and you know I can hold a grudge for a very long time."

"Women don't often say no to you… do they, Captain?"

"Well, in all fairness, you hardly tell me no now, Princess."

Color rushes to his bride's face and she bites her bottom lip, her mind undoubtedly wandering off to one of their various interludes. He loves the fact that he, and only he, can elicit such a response from her. He leans in and kisses her again, slow, torturous and laced with all manner of lascivious intentions that he means to make good on later that evening. He half expects her to scold him for kissing her like that in front of everyone but he doesn't care.

He's too incredibly happy to notice anyone else in this ballroom.

He never thought that he would have this, let alone want this. He had resigned himself eons ago that he would never love again. He had loved and lost and the pain of that was almost too much to bear.

But fate clearly had other plans.

He smiles at the memory of the first time that they had met. He can still feel the cold metal blade of her knife against his throat when he had encountered her below deck after he and his crew had isolated her ship from the rest of the royal armada and came aboard. The curl of her lips as they pulled into a satisfied smirk as she held his life in the palm of her hand would be etched into his memory for the rest of his life. She was unlike any princess that he had ever encountered and even then, he knew instantly that she would be the woman that would change his life forever.

And what a woman she was.

Everything that he thought he knew had been turned on its head. He had pursued her with a passion that startled him, finding all manners of excuses to visit her kingdom more often than his other favorite ports, and when she finally yielded and took him to bed, he was beyond all reason, desperately in love with this woman.

And only a woman of her caliber could reduce the fearsome Captain Hook to begging for her hand in marriage.

More couples filter onto the ballroom floor, filling up all of the space, dancing and reveling in the festivities, and he takes this moment to lead her away from prying eyes. Since their return from their elopement, they hadn't had much time to themselves. If planning this ball had been indicative of what a formal wedding would've been like, he was glad that they absconded aboard the Jolly Roger and married in secret. She takes him by his hook, bringing him to the terrace. Below, the streets of the kingdom were draped with all manner of decoration for the celebration leading all the way down to the harbor.

"What do you think, husband of mine? Do you think we could make a run for it? Just you, me and the Jolly?"

Coming behind her, he wraps his arms around her waist and he nestles his chin in the crook of her neck. Closing his eyes, he inhales the sweet mixture of the salt air from the sea and the perfume that she's applied along her shoulders and he wonders if he could possibly die from being this happy.

"As appealing as that does sound, Mr. Smee is shipping out tomorrow with the rest of the crew. In my pursuit of you, I've kept them from their desire to travel the realms for far too long."

"Will you miss it? Living at sea?"

She turns around, looking up at him in earnest. Tales of his travels across realms had lulled her to sleep many a night after multiple rounds of lovemaking. Yes, he loved the sea and it soothed his restless soul when he had wandered aimlessly through this existence. But now, all he wants is to be by her side for the rest of his days.

"Aye… but it would pale in comparison to the ache I would feel if I were to be separated from you, my love."

His hand runs through her hair and she leans into his touch, kissing the inside of his palm. He didn't know what he had done to earn her love but he would spend the rest of his days endeavoring to be worthy of her.

"I love you, Killian."

"And I love you, Emma."


End file.
